This invention is in the field of drawing glass or quartz tubing into micropipettes which may be utilized as microelectrodes, needles or the like.
The prior art teaches a variety of pipette pullers and glass drawing instruments. A book entitled "Physical Techniques in Biological Research, Vol. 5," published in 1967 and edited by William Nastuck, describes a variety of prior art devices for pulling glass pipettes for use as microelectrodes. The heating elements described are generally platinum coils, tubular heaters or elements which subtend an angle around the heating zone of more than 270.degree.. U.S. Pat. No. 4,111,677 dated Sept. 5, 1978 shows a device utilizing dual furnaces in which each furnace utilizes coil heaters. Generally speaking, the heating elements of the prior art have relatively high thermal inertia, relatively poor temperature control of heating elements and are not capable of adjusting the relative positions of the glass tube and the heating elements.